Vick Again

Few people seem to be able to engender such a broad range of emotions as Michael Vick. At one time in his life he was best known as one of the elite athletes in professional football. Maybe he wasn’t the best in the game, but maybe the best at his style of play. Little did we know that there was something else he was very good at – fighting and killing dogs. It has become clear that Vick not only bankrolled the operations of Bad Newz kennels, but also did much of the torture and killing of dogs with his own hands. Now, he is back in the news.

First, The BET network started running a ‘reality’ show about Vick’s road to redemption (I guess they already know that he’ll reach the end of that road before even starting – that does call into question how ‘real’ the show is). BET and Subway also awarded Vick their athlete of the year award. I’m not sure if the award was for his football playing or dog fighting, but I assume it was the former. He also received the NFL’s comeback player of the year award.

To put the cherry on top of Michael Vick’s cornucopia of accolades he recently signed a lucrative sponsorship deal with Nike.

I guess many who arrange for awards and sponsorships think people have forgotten about or forgiven Vick’s past. I doubt that many people have forgotten, but maybe some have forgiven. He did pay a debt to society and people do deserve a second chance. Maybe he has been working really hard to change himself and be a better person, but isn’t it a little soon to really tell? Celbrating the man in this way seems a bit beyond givnig a secong chance.

It seems to me that an award like ‘comeback player’ would be for someone who faced some unavoidable adversity like illness, injury or family tragedy that they overcame to play again. Not someone who knowingly and purposely committed multiple felonies that included torturing, killing dogs and burring them in the back yard. He decided to do those things. If not for his own actions, there would have been no need for a come back.

As for companies like Nike and Subway hitching their wagons to the new Vick. I think they must assume that there is a market of people who will just focus on his football acumen and can ignore his past. I would like to be able to forget his past, and I do think people should be forgiven and get a chance to start over when they have paid their debt, but I have a nagging feeling that there are better people out there to celebrate and present awards to than this man.

If you want to help Pit Bulls like the ones that Michael Vick tortured and killed, you can vote for the Humane Society’s Save A Bull program in the Pepsi Refresh Challenge. Click here to Vote.

Fergie was the kind of dog Vick was torturing, instead she's safe and looking for a home

Let’s be very clear about a couple of points. First and foremost being the myth that “Vick served his time.” This holds true only if your are of the opinion that OJ Simpson also “served his time” for the alleged murders of his wife and her friend. And if OJ “served his time”, why did he never work again – no endorsements, no movie roles, and no broadcasting. Those same courts that decided to give Vick a 3 year suspended sentence for his abuse, torment, killing and illegally gambling on dozens of dogs over a period of many years said OJ “paid his debt” – overpaid, actually, since he spent almost as long as Vick in jail for a crime he “never committed” in the eyes of the law. You must also accept the premise that her 2 and a half years behind bars for “providing false statements to investigators” absolves Casey Anthony of any further recriminations regarding the death of her child. The courts have spoken and she will soon have “served her time”. Perhaps Nike would care to sign her to a contract to shill for thier toddler sneakers. Maybe even give her a signature line of tot apparel. She certainly has the name recognition that Nike seems to hold so dear.

The second point is that in a free enterprise based economy, companies are indeed free to choose whom they wish to be the “face” of their products. Liekwise, consumers are free to patronize or not, based on whatever factors fuel their fancy. I do not care if I am the only one who never patronizes these businesses again. I would not buy Micael Vick a drink if we were sitting in the same bar, and I will not willingly and knowingly give a nickel to any company that chooses to hitch their wagon to Vick’s “star”. That goes for Nike who activelyt endorses him, as well as companies like Subway and Nissan who do not decry the use of their names in conjunction with Vick’s.

I do not think that Vick should spend the rest of his life in prison. I don’t believe he should be subject to capital punishment. I don’t believe Karma calls for him to be slathered in bacon grease and thrown into a pit with a pack of starving wolves. I DO believe people should look a little more closely at the circumstances surrounding the state prosecution that handed down a recommendation of a 3 year suspended sentence on a plea bargain for charges that could have landed him in prison for upwards of 60 years. I also think that a person who makes the conscious decision to spend years tormenting and torturing other living creatures simply for his own personal amusement and profit has crossed a line that cannot be uncrossed. And when they further make the conscious decision to summairly execute by cruel and torturous means those living creatures who failed to properly amuse them while being tormented in the first place, they have forfeited their right to EVER be put in a position to be viewed as a sports hero or role model for America’s children.

Sadly, companies will do anything for money, even if it means glorifying a mentally deranged person like Michael Vick, which they are clearly doing. Yes, he did do a small amount of time in jail, but not enough for his crimes. He is who he is, and someone that mentally sick and cold hearted cannot change his heart and mind. No matter what he portrays himself to be, he is not sorry for abusing those animals. He is a mental case without question. He is a scary individual who should be locked up either in prison or mental institution for the rest of his life so he can be monitored and prevented from torturing and abusing innocent, helpless beings ever again.
Also, his wife is mentally deranged as well to have allowed this to go on right outside her door step. How did she live each day knowing the suffering that was taking place outside her door? The family is clearly scary (mentally) to allow the suffering of innocent, helpless beings. His extended family, if they were aware of what was taking place outside Vick’s door while they were visiting and having dinner,
are clearly as mentally deranged as Vick himself.

I am not going to discuss this specific issue on this forum, mostly because I am tired of talking about it, and partly because these discussions tend to devolve into ad hominem attacks.

However, Brad, I feel compelled to express my displeasure with this post before I read a single word beyond the heading.

The doctored image that you chose to use, while I am presuming to your benefit was meant to be a parody, fun, engaging, or what have you, is also provocative in negative ways. Whether you chose to use that image deliberately for humour’s sake or in haste without thinking thru the ramifications is cause for dismay on several levels.

All forms of media are over saturated with negative, violent, scarey, menacing images and stories of bull terriers, which serve to perpetuate misconceptions about these dogs and do not portray their *true nature* to the public at large, and you should know this.

It is a sisyphean task combating the negative and untrue portrayals of these dogs and it is shocking to see that you either honestly do not know any better or did not exercise better judgment and forethought when choosing a photo.

For all those who work closely in the rescuing and training of, advocacy for, and educating the public about the bull terrier breeds(and, quite frankly, all dynamic breeds), and who truly understand the hard work and challenges involved with honestly, responsibly, and professionally representing these dogs, there is no reason to support your action.

While your desire to expand MHRHS’s involvement in the care, rescue, training, and advocacy work on behalf of bull terriers, is laudable, it would be more reassuring to see that the expertise, care and
*responsibility* that work involves is evident in the leadership and management of MHRHS. To demonstrate otherwise is ultimately a *disservice* to your intended mission, and undercuts other organization’s efforts, if not your own.

As is the case with anyone capable of abusing an adult, a child or an animal, you establish you are willing to operate OUTSIDE acceptable boundaries of law/decency/humanity. This was not just a little boo boo, and things are not all better.

You make a good point. I changed the picture to Vick’s mugshot. A careful look at the dog in the picture makes me think it is more like a lab mix than a pit bull, but I certainly see the issue and yes, we are working very hard at the Humane Society to change the image of this very misunderstood breed.

Well, the pit bull that you put to death last week certainly isn’t safe. You act as if you save animals, and I’m sure you do, but you’re certainly willing to kill an animal if it’s been abused and acts aggressively.

I’m not sure if you are referring to a specific animal or just assuming that an aggressive dog was euthanized last week. We do sometimes have to euthanize aggressive animals that pose a danger to the public. The strongest advocates I know of for Pit Bulls agree that we should adopt out dogs with sound temperaments, not those who may harm people and further reinforce the bad reputation of the breed. As you say, we save many animals. Half of the dogs currently for adoption are pit bulls or mixes.

Unfortunately, many shelters don’t have the resources and/or manpower to rehabilitate severely abused animals. Adopting out an animal that is overly aggressive is not an option. Josh, my advice is this: make a monetary donation to your local shelter if you would like to see less animals euthanized.

#39 I am just wondering (and perhaps it has been answered in the past), but are HALF the dogs brought in to the shelter pit bulls or are half the REMAINING dogs pit bulls (after other breeds have been adopted or rescued)?

60% of strays are Pit Bulls, 20% of Owner Surrenders. Overall about 35% of the dogs we receive are Pit Bulls. On the particular day that I made the comment half the dogs available for adoption were Pit Bulls. Pit Bulls are at the shelter twice as long as the average stay for other dogs before being adopted so there tend to be a large number available for adoption.